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New Student Orientation

Welcome

It's almost here!

Fall semester and your start in the Illinois PSM are just around the corner. This page has important information and steps you must take to begin your graduate school experience.

Welcome to Illinois and to the Illinois PSM!

Congratulations on your admission to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign! You are joining a select group.

We have important information about your Fall 2018 enrollment and your orientation on Thursday, August 23, 2018.

The information on this page supplements the information in your admissions letter from the Graduate College's Graduate and Professional Admissions. Carefully review all of the information in your letter and on this page. Then begin working through the necessary action steps to join one of the most unique master's degree programs in the world.

Connections - directory and social media connections with your new peers, and

Resources - information and links for transportation, housing, community information, and more.

Do you have questions or need more information? We're here to help. Contact Natalie Bosecker, Illinois PSM director, at natalieb@illinois.edu or (217) 265-5363.

Basics

FIRST, have you accepted our offer of admissions? If you have, terrific! If you haven't, do that now. In your admissions letter, you'll see "To submit your official admission acceptance decision to the Graduate College, please click here." Follow that link to let us know you're coming. Access your admissions letter by signing in with the username and password you created to submit your application.

SECOND, your admissions letter has information that specifically applies to you, including your 9-digit University ID Number (UIN) and Admit ID. It will also note any special admissions conditions. Make sure you read and understand all of the information in your letter.

THIRD, there are several easy yet crucial steps you need to take now and when you arrive on campus. The Graduate College has prepared a step-by-step Quick Guide to Graduate Life for

setting up your NetID and Enterprise ID,

creating your student email account,

getting your i-card, your official University photo ID card, and

submitting your final undergraduate transcripts,

and more.

Advising

Each Illinois PSM program is headed by a major advisor who serves as your principal academic advisor and mentor for your graduate school experience. Your major advisor will guide your selection of fall semester science courses and on other academic and professional matters. Initial advising for fall semester can be done by email or by telephone as many of you are not near the Illinois campus this summer. Contact your major advisor to schedule a time to plan your program of study:

After consulting with your advisor and reviewing the business course information below, you can register for fall courses (see the “Registration” section below).

International students: You will register for courses after you arrive on campus and check-in through International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS). Once checked-in, you will have access to the online course registration system. Check-in dates, times, and locations are available on the ISSS website.

Business - classes tentative for Fall 2018

This fall, you will complete four hours of business courses and the PSM industry seminar. Register for these courses online along with your science courses (see "Registration" section below). Note the class days and times of the business courses as you are planning your science curriculum courses with your major advisor. Each of the required business courses is offered only once during your 16-month program, so take them in sequence with your cohort.

All PSM students will take:

BADM 595 – Business Fundamentals

Section PSM

2 credit hours

CRN 56572

Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6-7:50 pm

Meets October 23 – December 13 (second half of the semester)

This course is PSM students only

Summary: This course examines business from marketing perspectives. You will learn about developing a coherent and comprehensive marketing strategy for a product or service. You will explore creating superior customer value, capturing value through pricing, persuasively communicating and profitably delivering value, and sustaining value and the performance in the face of ever-changing customer needs and competition.

You will also select one of the following four options: BADM 509, BADM 566, BADM 567, or TE 567.

BADM 509 – Managing Organizations

Section PSM

2 credit hours

CRN 37892

Tuesdays, 2:00 - 4:50 pm

Meets August 28 – October 20 (first half of the semester)

Summary: This course will help you better understand work organizations as a social system and the impact of its various components on work attitudes and behavior. You will understand the development of organizational structure, organizational effectiveness, decision making, policy formulation, leadership, and change.

or

BADM 566 – Supply Chain Management

Section MSB

2 credit hours

CRN 62289

Mondays and Wednesdays, 12:30- 1:50 pm

Meets October 23 – December 13 (second half of the semester)

Summary: This course will teach you how to manage flows of products and services from raw material sources to final customers. You will develop a system view of measuring channel performance, integrating cross – functional activities and coordinating processes across organizations.

or

BADM 567 – Process Management

Section MSB

2 credit hours

CRN 61656

Mondays and Wednesdays, 12:30 - 1:50 pm

Meets August 28 – October 20 (first half of the semester)

Summary: Introductory course in decision-making problems in production. This course includes the theoretical foundations for production management as well as the applications of decision-making techniques to production problems in the firm. It will also consider production processes, plant layout, maintenance, scheduling, quality control, and production control in particular.

If you have a scheduling conflict that prevents you from taking any of the BADM courses, you may opt to take the following technology entrepreneurship/engineering (TE/ENG) courses. The TE/ENG courses are with students from engineering and other programs.

BEFORE YOU REGISTER: After you have selected an option, contact us in the Illinois PSM office at PSMdegree@illinois.edu and let us know your choice. We will confirm your choice by email. Have a second option selected in case your first option isn't available.

You will also take the first course in the PSM industry seminar series:

PSM 501 – Industry Seminar I

Section A – 1 hour – CRN 54911 or

Section B – 0 hours – CRN 60375 (see note below for explanation)

Mondays, 5:00 - 6:20 pm

Meets August 27 – December 12 (all semester)

Summary: The first-semester industry seminar provides opportunities for you to refine your career objectives, plan and execute your internship search, learn professional skills and knowledge, and connect with people from industry.

Notes

1. BADM 595 and PSM 501 are PSM students only and all PSM students take these courses. The other business course may be with students in other graduate degree programs in the College of Business or in the College of Engineering.

2. For the industry seminar series (PSM 501, 502, and 503) and for the internship (PSM 555), you have the option of 0 or 1 credit hours. The zero credit hour option does not impact your grade point average; the final course grade is either 'S' or 'U' (satisfactory or unsatisfactory). If you choose the one credit hour option, a letter grade is assigned ('A', 'B', 'C', etc.) and is included in calculating your grade point average. The course requirements are identical, regardless of credit hours. The credit hours earned in these courses do not satisfy any other degree hour requirement (i.e., the 32 science hours, the 10 business hours, or the 42 total program hours). You must complete these courses regardless of the hours elected.

Registration

After you and your major advisor have decided on fall semester courses, you may register online. Log in to UI-Integrate Self-Service to register. To log in, you will use your EnterpriseID and password. A step-by-step instructions page is available to help you navigate through the system. Register for your science courses and for the business courses listed above.

Meet with your advisor and register as early as possible. Some courses may be filled, so allow time to find alternative courses if necessary. You do not have to register for all of your courses at one time, and you can exit and login to the registration system as often as necessary.

The Office of the Registrar provides important services that you will use during your enrollment at Illinois. You should familiarize yourself with academic deadlines, course registration, tuition, grades, graduation, transcripts, and other important information and services provided by the Office of the Registrar.

International students: You will register for courses after you arrive on campus and check-in through International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS). Once checked-in, you will have access to the online course registration system. International student check-in dates, times, and locations are available on the ISSS web site.

Fall payments are due on September 28. For payment options, including international payments by wire transfer, visit the Making Payments webpage.

Orientation - Thursday, August 23, 2018, 8:30 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

Kickoff for your Illinois PSM experience begins with Orientation. You'll meet with your peers, faculty members, and others. Orientation is informative and social -- the principal goals are for you to meet and begin working with your Illinois PSM colleagues, to understand the necessary transition to graduate-level study, learn about internship options and processes, and to start exploring the wealth of learning opportunities available to you at Illinois.

Orientation is Thursday, August 23, 2018, from 8:30 a.m. until about 2:00 p.m. in the Heritage Room (first floor) of the College of ACES Library [maps: online, printable (PDF)].

Lunch will be provided, as well as a light breakfast. Attire: Business casual preferred.

International Students

Strong English skills are highly encouraged for the Illinois PSM. There are many resources once you arrive on campus. Please visit the International Student and Scholar Services English resource page. You may also wish to consider the Intensive English Institute (IEI) or Transitions to Illinois Program for summer 2018. The application deadline for both programs will be posted soon. Please contact the Intensive English Institute at iei@illinois.edu with questions.

Connections

Start connecting with your new peers and colleagues:

Directory: We'll create a directory of students and alumni to help you get to know everyone. This is an ideal way to begin networking with other new students, the returning second-year students, and with Illinois PSM graduates. Take a few minutes to tell us about yourself using this online form. If you have questions, or if you do not want your information shared, please let us know.

Facebook: See pictures, announcements, and events on the Illinois PSM Facebook page.

Quad Day - The U of I has more than 1,000 student organizations. On Sunday, August 26th, representatives from many of these organizations will be available to talk about their clubs and encourage you to participate.

Twitter: Timely info nuggets on career fairs, events, program news, and other PSM-relevant information are available on Twitter.

Student Affairs - A wealth of information on student organizations, cultural centers, health and wellness, cultural centers and diversity, and much more

Tenant Union – U of I Tenant Union offers free assistance to locate housing, review leases and help with landlord disputes (You may wish to try ABODO for a local apartment search. The University of Illinois nor the Illinois PSM endorses this website nor the companies who advertise on the site.)

Taste of Champaign-Urbana - The area's premiere outdoor summer festival featuring food from area restaurants, diverse arts and crafts from local artists, and music and entertainment. August 17th and 18th.